Mobile messaging applications like WhatsApp popular in United States: study
More than a third of US phone owners use mobile messaging application such as WhatsApp, according to a study by the Pew Research Center, which also confirms that Twitter is struggling to follow the growth of other social networks like Instagram or Pinterest.
The survey, dedicated to online communication uses, shows that 36% of mobile phone users using messaging applications like WhatsApp (owned by Facebook) or iMessage (Apple), and 17% for tools like Snapchat send messages that self-destruct.
These messengers are even more popular for young adults, with rates going up to 49% and 41% in the age group 18-29 years.
One reason for the success of these applications is the cost: they usually download for free, and when the phone is connected to WiFi they allow sending messages without using the mobile operator’s data plan, says the Pew.
Its report also notes that they offer “a form of social interaction more private than traditional social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter.”
In terms of social networks precisely, the study confirms the dominance of Facebook in the United States, where 72% of it used, a level almost similar to last year (71%) and close to that of 2012 where the Pew began to address the issue (67%).
Behind the truck, networks that have the highest growth since 2012 are Pinterest, which allows “pinning” pictures (including the adoption rate has increased from 15% to 31%) and sharing pictures application Instagram (Facebook and subsidiary from 13% to 28%).
Growth was slower for the professional network LinkedIn (25% of users against 20% in 2012) and for messages in 140 characters Twitter (23% against 16%).
Facebook is the network that American users are most likely to connect every day (70%), followed by Instagram (59%), Twitter (38%), Pinterest (27%) and LinkedIn (22%).
The Pew was also interested in the use of the blog site Tumblr: the subsidiary of Yahoo! Internet group is used by a user in ten in the United States, a proportion that rises to 16% in urban areas and 20% among 18-29 year olds.
The study is based on a telephone survey conducted in March and April among a representative sample of 1907 adults over 18 living in the United States.
